Korea, Seoul : 경복궁

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I then went to visit 경복궁 (Gyeongbokgung) Palace, located on the West side of 창덕궁 and it also belongs to the 조선(Joseon) Dynasty. It was constructed in 1394 by the first king and founder of the Dynasty. Only 40% of the palace still stands but it is slowly being restored. It is a very large place complex, at first it's only buildings but as you progress to the North you can see more and more trees and garden with ponds. It is a very beautiful site. The different part of the palace have been added by different kings through the age. My favorite part is 향원정(Hyangwonjeong) pavilion which means "Pavilion of Far-Reaching Fragrance". It was build in 1873 by the order of King 고종(Gojon). It is build on an artificial island of a lake 향원지(Hyangwonji) and accessible through a bridge called 취향교(Chwihyanggyo) which means "Bridge Intoxicated with Fragrance". The bridge was first build on the North side of the lake and was the longest wooden bridge in 조선Dynasty but it was destroy during the war and rebuild on the South side.

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Korea, Seoul : 비원

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When you are visiting 창덕궁 you can also by extra tickets to visit 비원or 창경궁. I decided to go to 비원 and you sure wouldn't want to miss it. 비원 means Secret garden but our guide told us that it was more of a forbidden garden as only the royal family was allowed to enter it, or you at least needed their permission. The tour of the garden took us on a one and a half hour walk up and down on the mountain site behind the palace, the garden actually fusion with the mountain's vegetation in a strange way organized and wild at the same time. We stopped in five different places to see the residence of the Royal family and shrines.

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Korea, Seoul : 창덕궁

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I then went to visit 창덕궁 (Changdeokgung) Palace, it also belongs to the 조선 (Joseon) Dynasty. It's name 창덕궁 means Palace of Prospering Virtue. The particularity of this palace is that it retained many elements dating from the 삼국시대(Three Kingdoms of Korea period) on of it is that it blends with nature which is even more visible when you enter 비원 (Secret garden).  창덕궁 has been partially destroyed during Japanese occupation and currently only 30% of it remains. It is now classified as a UNESCO World Heritage list. It has been used as a filming location of the drama 大長今 (Dae Jang Geum).
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Korea, Seoul : 종묘

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The next day I went to visit the historical center of Seoul. My first stop was in 종묘 (Jongmyo) Sanctuaire Royal. 종묘 is a complex of 3 Confucian major shrine dedicated for services for the deceased Royal family from the 조선 (Joseon) Dynasty. One curious thing about this is that the 공민왕 신당 (Gongminwang Sindang) is dedicated to king 공민 (Gongmin) from the 고료 (Goryeo) Dynasty and his Mongolian wife. One of my favorite feature of the park is that they have a pathway for spirits where human shouldn't walk. Near the shrines they also have a special pathway for incense that was carried by priest before the ceremony, I find it rather interesting. The park is really large with a lot of trees and flowers blooming, if I was to live in Seoul I would probably spend a lot of time there. 종묘 is part of the UNESCO World Heritage list.
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